Forecast looking wet, really wet for Thanksgiving holiday | Weather

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It was a soggy Saturday, and we're just getting started with some nasty late November weather. LOTS of rain will be heading our way over the next week. So much so--potentially 20-30" of rain for the mountains over the next week (yes, 20 TO 30 INCHES OF RAIN!!!)--that we will almost certainly be dealing with a river flooding scenario around here by Thanksgiving Weekend.

The next disturbance in line rolls in late Sunday afternoon, and this one is decidedly stronger than the one that came through Saturday. Look for increasing rain and wind, especially after dark...the front will arrive by late afternoon/early evening. The rain will be steady in the lowlands, and the snow will become heavy over the Cascades, making for very tough pass travel. If you do have to cross the Cascades Sunday, best to do so before the heavy snow hits Sunday evening.

A WINTER STORM WATCH is up for the mountains now, and it will likely become a WARNING soon as the snowfall looks imminent. Snow totals between 8 to 18" are possible from Sunday PM to Monday PM in the higher peaks. The snow level will rise from 3,000' Sunday to 5,000' by later Monday, so eventually the passes will end up with rain instead of snow as the atmosphere warms some by Monday.

In addition to the rain and snow, the winds will get gusty on either side of the frontal passage. A HIGH WIND WATCH is up for the coast and Northwest Interior Sunday afternoon through Monday morning. Gusts at the coast in this time frame could reach 50-60 mph, and south winds blowing from Whidbey Island north toward B.C. may peak between 40 and 50 mph. Gusts around the Sound should stay below 35 mph tomorrow night.

The wet weather will keep making a bulls-eye out of our region much of the week. A series of storms will come through with periods of rain followed by showers and sunbreaks, but by Thanksgiving...boy, it looks pretty rough around here. An 'atmospheric river' will run through the Northwest over the holiday stretch, and that 'river' will drop sheets of rain over Western Washington from Thanksgiving Thursday into Friday AND Saturday.

At that point, our rivers should be rising rapidly thanks to the heavy rain in the lowlands along with the runoff coming down from the soggy deluge in the mountains...unfortunately, widespread river flooding looks likely by the holiday weekend.